Bert's Alerts—May 29, 2020
In the Spotlight
College of Western Idaho 2020 graduate, Tara Wright, celebrated the completion of her educational journey in style by wake surfing in her cap and gown at Lucky Peak. A graduate of the College’s Surgical Technologist program, Tara is already putting her degree to work at St. Luke’s. Congrats to her and all of this year’s #mightyCWI graduates! Read Tara’s story on KTVB.
News Highlights
Congratulations, 2020 Graduates!
In celebration and acknowledgement of our 2020 graduates, College of Western Idaho’s first-ever virtual ceremony will go live Friday, June 19! The College’s 11th commencement will recognize degree and certificate graduates as well as GED completers and Workforce Development Apprenticeship graduates with personalized slides, self-paced navigation, messages from College leadership, and social media engagement.
2020 graduates can participate in the virtual ceremony by submitting a photo and quote for their personalized slide. Each graduate should have received an email from noreply@marchingorder.com on behalf of the Registrar Office with directions for submission. Submissions must be received no later than Thursday, June 4, 2020. Graduates who have not received this information are asked to email registrar@cwi.edu.
In addition to the virtual ceremony, faculty, staff, and graduates are invited to attend Grab Fest. This curbside pick-up event, held both July 17 and 18 at the Nampa Campus Micron Education Center, will allow graduates to 'grab' a commemorative program, diploma cover, tassel, and a keepsake. For graduates unable to attend the event, these items will be shipped to them directly.
Visit cwi.edu/graduation or email registrar@cwi.edu to learn more the virtual commencement ceremony.
Congratulations to all our 2020 graduates! You made it!
Graduates Continue Nursing Pinning Tradition
2020 CWI Nursing Program Pinning Ceremony
Honking horns and flashing lights from graduate's cars flooded the parking lot at the Nampa Campus Academic Building (NCAB) during College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) 2020 Essential Nursing Pinning Ceremony on May 16.
The celebration kicked off as forty-four vehicles with graduates were greeted by cheering family and friends lining Selland Way, with a Nampa Police Department motorcycle leading the procession. A video produced by CWI captures the sights and sounds of this unique event during the coronavirus pandemic.
Allison Baker, Department Chair of the Professional Nursing program, started the ceremony by welcoming the graduates parked in a semicircle in NCAB’s east parking lot. Board of Trustees Chairperson C.A. “Skip” Smyser praised the dedication of graduates and capped off his remarks with, “Congratulations on this major, milestone accomplishment – go forth, be strong, be mighty, be fearless, and go Otters!”
Following President Bert Glandon’s comments, John Hickey delivered a student message during the presentation.
“I’m pretty sure none of us thought we would be celebrating our pinning in a parking lot, and certainly, we never imagined we would be entering the nursing profession in the midst of the greatest pandemic in over 100 years,” Hickey said. “Never before in our countries history has the importance of healthcare workers been so evident.”
While maintaining social distancing, the graduates received their pins and took their oath, wrapping up the event. As the graduates departed, faculty and staff formed a line and cheered them on.
"Nursing pinning this year was especially heartfelt for me," said Cathleen Currie, Dean of Health. “Seeing the joy and pride in each car as the students and their families drove out made the worries of the week’s gone by worth it. There wasn’t a dry eye among us.”
Visit CWI's Facebook page to view a photo gallery from the event.
2020 President's Writing Awards
Presidents Writing Awards 2020 final review
College of Western Idaho's (CWI) English department is proud to present the recipients of its annual President’s Writing Awards. The annual awards were established to recognize and honor excellence in student writing at CWI. This year, a virtual recognition ceremony was produced to announce the winners. Students were honored for their work during a video presentation and remarks from President Bert Glandon. This is the seventh year Glandon and his wife, Jane, selected students to receive awards in the following categories:
- Creative Nonfiction
- Critical Analysis
- Fiction
- First-Year Writing
- Literature Based Research
- Original Based Research
- Poetry
- Technical Writing
The 2020 President’s Writing Award winners are:
Creative Nonfiction: first-person accounts that explore the writer’s experiences and observations.
- First Place - Ashlee Vanliew (Faculty, Laura Stavoe)
- Second Place - Cassandra Kiyoko Woodard (Faculty, Malia Collins)
- Third Place - Meira Vaid (Faculty, Malia Collins)
Critical Analysis: represents essays that critically evaluate or analyze a piece of literature, a theatrical performance, a work of visual art, a historical moment, a philosophical argument, a social movement, etc.
- First Place - Ashton Syed (Faculty, Robert Harbaugh)
- Second Place - Laura Baldwin (Faculty, Kim Scheffer)
- Third Place - Cassandra Kiyoko Woodard (Faculty, Liza Long)
Fiction
- First Place - Joseph Higley (Faculty, Dave Nicholas)
- Second Place - Kathleen Brashier (Faculty, Catherine Kyle)
- Third Place - Kimberly Harwood (Faculty, Dave Nicholas)
First-Year Writing
- First Place - Valerie Roberts (Faculty, Liza Long)
- Second Place - Jonathan Lucero (Faculty, Abby Wolford)
- Third Place - Kassandra Kolbet (Faculty, Roni Rankin)
Literature Based Research
- First Place - Cassandra Kiyoko Woodard (Faculty, Nikki Gorrell)
- Second Place - Erin Gee (Faculty, Heather Schoenherr)
- Third place - Julie McCoubrey (Faculty, Reggie Jayne)
Original Research
- First Place - Sevio Stanton (Faculty, Brian McClain)
- Second Place - Alison Brenenstall (Faculty, Michelle Fellows)
- Third Place - Erin Gee (Faculty, Michelle Fellows)
Poetry
- First Place - Travis Wayne Hill (Faculty, Abby Wolford)
- Second Place - Nicole Alexandra Kreiner (Faculty, Jana McCurdy)
- Third Place - Ashlee Vanliew (Faculty, Abby Wolford)
Technical Writing
- First Place - Ashton Syed (Faculty, Karl Von Der Ehe)
- Second Place - Mikela Baciu (Faculty, Karl Von Der Ehe)
- Third Place - Aubrey Pulsipher (Faculty, Karl Von Der Ehe)
Watch the video, and stay tuned for additional virtual presentations recognizing 2020 Connections Excellence and Emerging Scholars recipients.
Scholarships Open for 2020-2021 Academic Year
The College of Western Idaho (CWI) Foundation scholarships application period opens Nov. 1 for the 2020-2021 academic year. One application makes applying for scholarships at CWI easy and provides students with a number of scholarship opportunities in the College’s academic and career-technical programs. More than 300 students received scholarships through the Foundation during the 2019-2020 academic year.
Students interested in applying for scholarships must have the CWI admission application completed, be accepted, and have myCWI login information. The application closes Nov. 30, 2020.
Visit the Grants and Scholarships page to learn more or apply.
Staff of the Month—April 2020
Congratulations to Russell Hills, College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Staff of the Month for April 2020. Hills, a Facilities Building Specialist, celebrated 10 years of service to the College this year at the beginning of May.
“I have always wanted to be a custodian,” he said. “My friend, who worked for CWI at the time, told me about the job opening. I applied and was accepted for the position. This line of work is appealing to me because I like keeping my building clean and being able to communicate with my coworkers and the employees I have gotten to know here. I hope to never stop working here.”
As a Building Specialist, Hills is essentially the caretaker of the Nampa Campus Aspen Classroom Building, Multipurpose Building, and the Administration Building, of which he takes great pride in.
“Russell is always on top of his game and willing to help CWI look amazing,” commented a coworker. “He never complains about doing his job and is very helpful to employees and students. Not only is he a great employee, he is also a great friend. When I was new at CWI, he made sure I knew all the ins and outs of everything before I was even a full week in.”
“The guy is absolutely incredible,” said Jeff Flynn, Executive Director of Facilities Planning and Management. “He is the go-to person for the entire Aspen center. Whether it’s Security or the President’s Office, it doesn’t matter what it is, he’s the guy. What stands out most about Russell is the pride he takes in his work and how seriously he takes his responsibilities. When the work is done, he finds something else. There is no person in the College more deserving of this type of recognition. Russell goes above and beyond, minute-by-minute, and for that we cannot thank him enough.”
Originally from Coffeyville, Kansas, Hills moved to Idaho in 2002 after meeting his wife, Nicki, online. The couple has been together for 18 years and have two kids together. As a family they enjoy going to Meridian Speedway, riding bikes, and spending time outdoors. In addition to his work at CWI, Hills works for Nampa Parks and Recreation on the weekends between April and October.
Board Proclaims Appreciation for Faculty and Staff
BOT recognition May 2020 REV USE
During College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, May 19, Chairperson C.A. “Skip” Smyser issued a proclamation of appreciation and recognition for the Faculty and Staff of CWI.
Smyser underscored how impressed and inspired the board is with the performance of the College during these unprecedented times.
“Increased education and community support services are needed in order to improve options and provide access to quality educational opportunities for students, it is imperative that CWI continues to employ the best faculty and staff,” says Smyser. “CWI faculty, staff, and community have, without question, risen to new, unequaled levels of dedication, service, and devotion to student learning.”
Watch the video shared during the meeting, showcasing the mighty teams at the College who serve students.
HR Launches PageUp
Human Resources is excited to announce the launch of PageUp, College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) new talent-management system, which will go live Monday, June 1. This new system, a replacement of the current system, Silkroad, will be utilized by hiring managers and job seekers to assist in the recruitment and onboarding process. In the future, the system will also assist with employee performance management as well as learning and development.
We are thrilled to implement this system,” said Human Resources Recruiter, Sara Avila. “As our team assessed the College’s current hiring and onboarding processes, we were able to identify opportunities to create efficiencies by streamlining the process improving both our hiring manager’s and candidate’s experiences.”
In relation to the hiring process, PageUp will remove the need for hard-copy forms including Position Request Forms (PRF) and Personnel Action Forms (PAF) – for new hires, transfers, and additional assignments – which will reduce manual tracking and increase mobility creating transparency internally throughout the hiring process. Job seekers will now have an applicant portal where they will be able to upload and update their resume and apply for or withdraw from positions.
PageUp will revolutionize the onboarding process for new employees allowing customization of the process to fit various needs of different areas of the College. New hires will be welcomed to the CWI family with an email directing them to an onboarding portal. Here the employee can learn about CWI and complete onboarding tasks.
“We want our new hires to experience a warm, welcome, and smooth onboarding experience,” said Avila. “PageUp allows us to do all this and more covering the entire life cycle of an employee from the moment they are hired to their departure.”
For questions about PageUp, please contact Human Resources at hr@cwi.edu.
Careers at CWI
Internal Job Postings
PageUp Employee Dashboard
Return To Onsite Operations
College of Western Idaho (CWI) has worked to establish guidance and resources to support employees returning to work. This work is in alignment with the State of Idaho’s Rebound plan. Following is a summary of the first two phases of this approach. Employees will also need to review the supporting materials for more detailed guidance at CWI’s coronavirus page:
- Return-to-Work Guide slide deck
- Return-to-Work Operational Plan
- Return-to-Work SOP
Please note the following guidelines are dependent on state and federal requirements and in line with the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and corresponding health districts.
CWI Phase 1
Starting now – June 12, those able to work remotely, will continue to do so unless EOT/PC has decided otherwise. Employees who support summer student needs (instruction and services), fall student enrollment, and employees who cannot reasonably conduct all work remotely, are allowed to return to campus locations and will be expected to follow social distancing and sanitation protocols. All meetings will continue online. Visitors will be limited to those required to provide essential college business. Additionally, the tracking of individuals and activities on campus will be maintained.
CWI Phase 2
Beginning June 13 – Fall Semester start, the College will start the second phase, which aligns with stage four of the state's reopening. It will focus on additional services opening and employees entering into a phased plan to return onsite, as appropriate. Students may return to campus to access limited services and summer session courses based on space capacity - if social distancing can be achieved and maintained. Non-essential travel continues to be restricted. Public access to CWI buildings will be allowed with PC approval. More specific tracking of individuals and activities on campus will continue.
Training for managers on these new procedures will be provided to those who supervise employees. As we move forward, resuming more onsite campus operations, employees will be trained through a variety of means, including their manager. The information will be made available to all employees, for details on CWI Phases 3 and 4, you can review the Operational Plan.
The goal of reopening campus locations is to protect employees, students, and the public, while supporting sustainable college operations that maintain a healthy work and learning environment, and assist everyone in taking personal responsibility to ensure success in reopening.
Thank you all for your assistance in staying informed, understanding and following the guidelines, and ultimately achieving our number one goal, ensuring everyone stays healthy.
Download Return-to-Work Guide
Download Operational Plan
Download Standard Operating Procedures
